Stink is a pile of burning garbage 'the size of a block of flats'

Peter Foley
Senior Reporter
Raised in Ipswich, I have been a reporter at The Queensland Times since 2002. I cover general news. For quite a few years I was responsible for the police round. My round now is local government. I also love covering horse racing when I can sneak out of the office.

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A SICKENING stench making people's lives miserable around Ripley and Raceview has been traced to a massive mound of burning garbage.

Ipswich City Council and the State Government said it was on a site at Swanbank owned by Lantrak it acquired from Biorecycle. The site is licensed to receive 400,000 tonnes a year of commercial and industrial waste, asbestos, low-contaminated soils and acid sulphate soils.

As reported in yesterday's QT, people have reported the smell of "burning dead animals and plastics", from the area in the past six weeks, especially in the evenings and early morning.

Mayor Paul Pisasale said Lantrak should have come clean before fumes began affecting residents and he called on the government to fine the company.

Lantrak didn't return calls from the QT yesterday.

"Why would a company jeopardise people's health? They should come down like a tonne of bricks on them," Cr Pisasale said.

"It's a pile about the size of a big block of flats. We're told it's building material and green waste, but people are worried about their health.

A massive pile of waste burning at a Bio-Recycle dump site at Ripley. Photo: ContributedContributed

"It's a pile about the size of a big block of flats. We're told it's building material and green waste, but people are worried about their health.

"I'd like to see them give a full account of why it caught fire, why they didn't report it and why they shouldn't be fined."

Dr Glen Brown of the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection said it was investigating the burning waste at the disposal site.

"The department is working with the operators of the site and other agencies to bring this situation under control as soon as practical," Dr Brown said.

"The department is continuing to investigate if other sources may also be responsible for the odour complaints."

A massive pile of waste burning at a Bio-Recycle dump site at Ripley. Photo: ContributedContributed